National Register of Historic Places

Fawcett, Wilford H., House

Breezy Point, Crow Wing County, Minnesota
Listed
May 22, 1980
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
80002036

About this property

The Wilford H. Fawcett House is a house in Breezy Point, Minnesota, United States, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Wilford H. Fawcett, also known as "Captain Billy", started the book "Captain Billy's Whiz Bang" as a joke book for soldiers during World War I. He formed Fawcett Publications in 1919 in Robbinsdale, Minnesota. In 1920, he bought a tract of land where the present-day Breezy Point Resort is located, and he began building cottages and a large log lodge. The lodge has since burnt down. He built the Fawcett House as a private residence within the resort property. Fawcett hired the Minneapolis architects of Magney and Tusler and commissioned the design in the Swiss Chateau style. The rustic log style was a bit ironic, since the local logging industry had declined before the resort was built. The house is located on a point on Breezy Point Bay on Big Pelican Lake. It has a "Y" shape. The center of the "Y" has a circular staircase leading to a "reading balcony" in the main hall. The building is constructed of peeled and trimmed Norway pine logs, with brown stain on the exterior and varnished on the interior. The center hall contains the "reading balcony", a large stone masonry fireplace, exposed logs for the rafter beams, and wrought iron fixtures. The remainder of the house has room for about 30 guests. In 1979, a fire damaged several rooms in the northwest wing, but the exterior was unharmed. While the interior has been modernized somewhat, it remains sympathetic to the original.

Location

Breezy Point, Crow Wing County, Minnesota
46.59002, -94.20799

Categories

LITERATUREARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Cole, A.L., Memorial Building
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5.1 mi
Broach, H. H., House
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Minnewawa Lodge
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6.2 mi
Minnesota and International Railroad Freight House and Shelter Shed
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6.6 mi
Grand View Lodge
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8.4 mi

Questions about this property

When was Fawcett, Wilford H., House listed on the National Register?

Fawcett, Wilford H., House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 22, 1980.

What type of historic resource is Fawcett, Wilford H., House?

Fawcett, Wilford H., House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Fawcett, Wilford H., House?

The period of significance for Fawcett, Wilford H., House is recorded as the industrial era.

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